Spike in female prisoners means women to be held in Her Majesty’s Penitentiary

Published on March 1, 2016

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Telegram file photoPhoto of the rear of Her Majesty’s Penitentiary on Forest Road in St. John’s as seen from across Quidi Vidi.

The provincial government will be housing female inmates at Her Majesty’s Penitentiary for a while, due to a “sharp increase” in the number of incarcerated women in recent weeks.

“The Newfoundland and Labrador Correctional Centre for Women has a capacity of 26 women and the average daily count for February was 36 inmates, while several females are also being regularly held at the St. John’s Lockup,” Justice Minister Andrew Parsons said in a news release. “This puts a significant strain on the inmates and the staff.”

The news release said there will be “absolutely no interaction” between male and female inmates while women are being held at the penitentiary.

The women will be held in the Intermittent Unit.

Parsons will be providing more information to journalists at 4:30 p.m. today.

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